Thursday, February 25, 2016

Thursday Movie Picks - Love Triangles

Written as part of the weekly blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Join in the fun by picking three films that fit the week's theme and telling us a bit about them!

Ah, the love triangle. The time-honored tradition of two men going after the same woman... or one woman falling for two different guys at the same time (yeah, it usually doesn't go the other way around). It is a situation fraught with tension. Or, at least, it can be. I can only imagine how frustrating this must be in real life, but in movies it can sometimes be fun.

The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, 1940) I suppose you COULD call this a "love square" since Katharine Hepburn's Tracy Lord has three suitors.... except that the third man (John Howard's poor George) is really never part of the "love" part of the equation. Tracy divorced C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant) for his alcoholism, and now she's set to marry the respectable and utterly boring George, who worships her. But then undercover newspaper reporter Mike Connor (Jimmy Stewart) shows up and sparks fly as friendly competition picks up between all three of them (this is Kate Hepburn we're talking about, after all). Everyone knows she isn't going to end up marrying George (poor, poor George), but will she fall back in love with (read: realize she never fell out of love with) Dexter, or will she fall hard enough for the stalwart Mike? The three leads could not have been more perfectly cast (except perhaps for the two men Hepburn originally wanted, Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy - of course), and despite the manic plot the whole thing is fleet-footed in that way that only comedies of the 1930s and 40s are.

Victor/Victoria (Blake Edwards, 1982) Alright, now pay attention, this one's kinda complicated. Out of work opera singer Victoria Grant (Julie Andrews) is broke and starving in Paris when she runs into Carroll Todd (Robert Preston). Together, they hatch a plan to become the toast of the town: Victoria will play the role of Victor, a female impersonator. She sings as herself, then at the end of the act, rips off her "wig" to "reveal" herself as a man! Because Julie Andrews is SO BUTCH! But then Chicago club owner King Marchand (James Garner) and his girlfriend Norma (Lesley Ann Warren, the REAL star of this movie) show up, and King falls in lust/love with Victor. I mean, Victoria. Because he's absolutely positive that there's no way she's really a man (probably because he's an American. I mean, what do the French know, right?). But Norma is convinced her beau is falling for a man, because she may be a ditz, but she's not completely.... well, no, really, she is completely dumb. But now King is caught in the middle, between a crazy dumb chick and a woman playing a man playing a woman. A lot of the very smart things Victor/Victoria has to say about gender, sexuality, love, and attraction are undercut somewhat by the fact that "Victor" really doesn't exist, but to be honest, that doesn't really matter, because Blake Edwards is in top form here, perfectly staging every single scene in this gag-filled movie musical. And the music by Henry Mancini is pretty damn great, too. Come for Julie's iconic "Le Jazz Hot", stay for the beautiful, hugely effective ballad "Crazy World". And then there's Lesley Ann Warren, doing the greatest dumb blonde routine this side of Jean Hagen in Singin' in the Rain.

3 (Tom Tykwer, 2011) What if a couple in a long-term relationship fell, independently of each other, for the same man? That is the question posed by Tom Tykwer's film, and it's a totally contemporary, worthy question. And the best part is, most "love triangles" are really Vs, with one person attracted to two others at the same time. But here, that third line gets filled in, creating a TRUE love triangle. It's a fascinating film, kind of like Tykwer's breakthrough Run Lola Run without the action sequences, but with all that energy turned into sex/sexiness.

12 comments:

I haven't seen any of your picks but the third film seems interesting, I will try to look for it. I'm struggling to watch musicals and classic films (I've only seen a handful for both), but they seem good movies as well.

OMG! You went with 3!!! I almost chose that one, but fell back on the film that obviously inspired it (and Heartbeats), Jules et Jim. I love how 2011 presented us with two films inspired by one of the greatest films of all time.

The two that I've seen are wonderful picks and I'm going to queue up 3 and give it a look. I really liked Run, Lola, Run but my faith in the director was shaken by that awful pile that is Cloud Atlas, hopefully this will restore it.

This is the second time I've seen Philadelphia Story pop up, wonderful film even if I prefer "Holiday" of the Grant/Hepburn films. I do love Julie Andrews but Robert Preston and Lesley Ann Warren walk away with V/V and she's not believable for an INSTANT as a man.

I decided to go a bit lighter this week though since my last comes from the pen of John Hughes you know there has too be some angst attached!

This Means War (2012)-Two CIA secret agents (Chris Pine & Tom Hardy) best friends and roommates go all out in their competition when they discover they have fallen for the same woman (Reese Witherspoon). The three actors work hard to buoy this with their personality and charisma. One problem: Tom Hardy and Chris Pine’s chemistry with each other is much stronger than either share with Reese. The director's roots in music videos are painfully obvious and he does nothing to smooth out the many kinks in the borderline creepy plot.

Keeping the Faith (2000)-A triangle with a twist. Two men-a priest and a rabbi (Edward Norton & Ben Stiller), friends since childhood, fall for the same woman (Jenna Elfman). She is likewise a friend from their youth newly returned to town. The various conflicts the situation presents make up the bulk of the film.

Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)-Working class high schooler Keith (Eric Stoltz) longs to date the most popular girl in school Amanda Jones (Lea Thompson) and his best friend, the tomboyish Watts (Mary Stuart Masterton), tries to help at first. Once he makes the date though she realizes she’s jealous. Add in that Amanda’s ex-boyfriend, jackass rich boy Hardy (Craig Sheffer), resents being replaced by someone he sees as inferior and plots revenge. All the pieces are now in place for a big showdown. If the plot sounds somewhat familiar it’s because this was written by the prolific king of 80’s teen angst John Hughes. Good performances all around.

I LOVED Cloud Atlas, but I can (somewhat begrudgingly) see why people didn't take to it. Tykwer's work with the Wachowskis is completely different from his solo work, though, so check out 3.

Literally EVERY TIME I watch V/V I ask myself if it's supposed to be so obvious that Julie isn't believable for even one instant as a man. She ALMOST makes it work a few times, but just almost. The whole thing is so damn entertaining that I always end up not minding, though.

I really wish Grant and Hepburn had paired up more often. Their chemistry works so well together.

RE: This Means War (the only one of your picks that I've seen) - I thought Hardy and Pine's chemistry with each other being so much stronger than the solo chemistry with Reese was the whole point, no? I mean, they're gay, right? I mean.... wait, no, sorry that was just the fantasy I concocted in my head while watching that movie. It's harmless fluff. McG's work on Charlie's Angels is far better.

I have seen the first two and picked The Philadelphia Story for one of my picks his week. I love Victor/Victoria! this was a great movie and You are so right that Warren was great in this role.I also loved Alex Karras. I haven't seen the third film but. It looks good.

The Philadelphia Story is definitely an ultimate triangle of brilliance. I haven't seen the other two films but someone at work keeps singing songs from Victor/Victoria and thinks I know what he's singing.

About Me

Performer since birth, tap dancer since the age of 10. Life-long book-lover. Film obsessive. Frustrated artist since college graduation. Non-profit database specialist by day, tap teacher by night, Netflix binge-watcher by weekend.